Ravi Subramaniyan, also called the John Grisham of India, decided to bring a change and deviated a little from his usual style of writing gripping thrRavi Subramaniyan, also called the John Grisham of India, decided to bring a change and deviated a little from his usual style of writing gripping thrillers based on a banker’s life. This time it’s a story of love, fame, betrayal and deceit, based on a banker’s life. Don’t get me wrong, I love Ravi’s style of writing, in fact “Bankster” is one book that I’ve recommended to almost all of my reader friends, but this change in form of “The bestseller she wrote”, didn’t really appeal to me in a way his other books did. Although, as a standalone book it’s still great, but that’s a cost you have to bear when you’re an author everybody looks up to.

Review:The back cover blurb does intrigue one to read the book, I’ve got to give it to the author for that. The story begins with Aditya, who is married man with a son, is a successful author and a successful banker. He goes to IIM Bangalore to deliver a talk where he meets Shreya, and thus begins a story, at first with an argument which later turns Shreya into a big fan of Aditya. Ravi has tried to be a lot different from his style, especially in the first half with all the love bits. But he very much compensates for it in the next half with the signature thrilling style and twists and turns that will not let you put the book down.If I go too much into the story, I might give away some spoilers which I don’t want to. So I’ll say this, if you’re a fan of Ravi’s work or want a light read for the weekend, this book is definitely a good pick. But I’d rather you not have too many expectations from it. Normally this book would be a 3.5/5 for me, but having read other books by Ravi, I’d give this a 3/5.

Just after reading the plot I was intrigued, I’ve read a lot of books but this was new! Personally, I am very picky about the books I read and this onJust after reading the plot I was intrigued, I’ve read a lot of books but this was new! Personally, I am very picky about the books I read and this one definitely seemed worth a shot. More about it to follow.

What I liked:Let me begin by saying what I’ve already said once, full marks for the unique plot. When so many new and old authors in India are trying to milk the same old cow of romantic stories (Guilty as charged!), Sameer not only finds an entirely different plot in the field of his expertise, but makes sure it is an engaging one as well. Which brings me to my next point, the language is lucid and there were hardly any points where I felt disconnected. If you’re a fan of humor like me, you’ll surely like the way Sameer has managed to make it a fun read. The character of Michael is very well built, but being the romantic jerk that I am, no wonder I liked Angie more than anyone else. Angie is the wife of Woodie, who’s the Mafia boss who hires Michael. While the words “Mafia Boss” give you an image like Don Vito Corleone, the character of Woodie will conjure an entirely different image for you. He’s the kind of boss who owns everything but apparently fails to know a few things. All in all, I liked all these characters, and the fact that the book, although contains the word management, won’t bore you with the technicalities and still manage to give you an insight of the world, which is cool!

What I didn’t like:Not a lot of unlikable things in the book. I just wanted a little more space to Angie’s character, but that’s all personal. But when I say the same for Martin, that’s strictly from a reviewer’s point of view. One more thing is that when you read about a “Mafia Boss”, the word itself has so much authority in it that gives you the chills (or that can be a particular case of watching the goodfellas), but Woody is more or less a dumb character, which suits well for the humor but at the same time, manages to disappoint anyone who’s reading the book for the thrill of the mafia world. In one of the reviews I read before reading the book itself, it was mentioned that the book has many proofreading errors. I failed to find them, but that can be blamed either on my poor English skills that I didn’t know they were errors or my extremely good English skills that I subconsciously corrected them. In any case, I’m mentioning this so that you won’t blame me later.

Starting with the prelude, the book has something about it which will bind you right from the beginning. I loved how the two authors engage in a conversation and start telling each other stories that lead to this anthology. I won’t be giving away spoilers here or review every story separately, but tell you what you are going to love in this one.

Right from story number one, a fateful night, you are going to fall for the Authors’ narration style and description of the surroundings. And that is something which won’t disappoint you throughout.

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The stories range from a weekend celebration of a few youngsters gone wrong to a sociopath who kills girls to quench his desperation. In some stories you are going to have those sudden thrilling moments which will make you freak out if you’re the kind of person who gets afraid when the scary witch comes alive in horror movies.

When I started reviewing the book there was a thought in my mind. That I was such a wrong person to review it, since never in my life have I been afraid of anything. Even “The conjuring” had managed to make me laugh at most. But this is not all that you read a book for. Not only I am sure this book will scare the hell out of people who do get scared by things, everyone who likes to read will fall short of words while praising the quality of writing.

The thought behind every story is creative and new (and disturbing.. to a great extent :P ).

I’d specially mention two stories, “A mother’s love” and “Dreamgirl” for the amazing storyline and narration. No story in particular disappointed me, although I do hope the “Red bangles” had a better ending.

Being from Jaipur and having been to Bhangarh, I may not totally agree, but liked the Epilogue.

This book may not be in the “Must read” list for you, but this being a collection of short stories, I’d recommend this to everyone who likes short reads and to everyone who likes ‘different’ stuff, if you know what I mean....more